LENO: Bill Gates? Is that going to work? Guys, would you buy a condom that has the word “micro” and “soft” in it?

(Loud audience laughter)

LENO: Is that really going to work? No, I don’t …

(Drowned out by sustained audience laughter)

LENO: Let’s just hope it offers better protection against viruses than Windows, okay?

(Audience laughter, cut to commercial)

…

Leno, who is hardly New To Seattle when it comes to fodder for his monologue, is not alone in connecting Gates’ challenge with the source of his fortune. Cracked a poston the ABC News website, “Bill Gates’ latest project gives a whole new meaning to the old Microsoft slogan, ‘Your Potential. Our Passion.’ ”

Meanwhile, on the headline front: “Gates wants geeks to build a better condom,” said the website of KCTV in Kansas City. A story on Zimbio was headed, “You’ll Never Guess What Bill Gates Will Pay You $100,000 To Do.”

Seattle can take some solace from the fact that such happenings taking place in, say, Minot, N.D., probably wouldn’t get this attention. Clearly, another reason for tourists to come visit.